The Eta Project
by LTC
Summary: Ro and Zee on the run from the NSA meet up with a strange new ally...Edit finished- the last two chapters are completely changed & an Epilogue added.
1. The NSA's New Plot

NSA Headquarters, Gotham City. February 2nd, 2042, 2:44:37 pm  
  
Welcome to NSA Headquarters. Please scan your ID for access.  
  
The computerized voice echoed through the dark hallway. A middle aged man with a grim expression reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small computerized badge that resembled a CredCard. He scanned it into the computer, and then replaced it in his jacket pocket, removing his green visor and fiddling impatiently while the computer matched his eye scan with his file.  
  
Welcome back, Agent Bennett. Please proceed to Level 4, where Captain Thompson awaits you with information regarding Project 000146.  
  
Bennett scowled. How useless this whole thing was. The added security was for nothing- if the NSA's enemies wished to enter the building, all they would have to do would be implant a virus into the computerized guard, and march right on in. A smile nearly crept over Bennett's stony face. That would certainly teach the pompous Board Commanders a lesson. Bennett had always hated Gotham HQ, home to the self-absorbed commanders who always seemed ready to degrade Bennett further about his progress in the infamous Project 000146. The Project certainly was the shame of the NSA- there seemed to be no reason that a lone synthoid and a teenager could elude the NSA's finest agents for nearly two years. He had even overheard younger agents discussing a seemingly pointless paper they had to write, it was referred to as a real Project 000146, a word that had become synonymous with doomed.  
  
Bennett wondered why Thompson had called him out here to Gotham; the kindly older agent knew how deeply Bennett despised the place. It had better be important information that Thompson had, seeing as Bennett would far rather be following Zeta's trail in Colorado. If he could only catch the damn synthoid and return him to the NSA- that would prove that he was no failure.  
  
A persistent beeping noise interrupted Bennett's thoughts, informing him that an elevator had arrived. The steel doors opened and the grumpy agent stepped in, allowing himself to be borne upward, to Level 4. Finally, the doors opened again, displaying a rather unexciting section of NSA HQ, a room resembling an ordinary office building, the intelligence ward. Young Intelligence Agents clacked away on high speed computer networks, constantly searching for information. Bennett heard the clacking stop and many pairs of eyes watching him in curiosity as he crossed the room. Bennett scowled, annoyed how unprofessional these imbecilic agents were. The stares didn't bother him, ever since taking on Project 000146, he was used to being stared at. No one could quite understand why an agent on his way to becoming a captain would become so attached to a Project that seemed to destroy any attempts to master it with great ease. Two years, nearly, and the NSA was no closer to capturing Zeta than when it started. This had not exactly helped Bennett's career. Agent Bennett reached an office door, marked  
  
Capt. Thompson Department of Terrorism  
  
Bennett rapped several times on the door, then opened it without waiting for a response. He nodded at a slightly pudgy balding man in his fifties, a likeable uncle figure with squinty baby blue eyes, a tiny pursed mouth, and wire-framed spectacles, a bit of a relic in the mid twenty-first century when laser eye surgery was sold for 10 creds an eye at any low-quality medical facility. This man was the head of Bennett's department, whose expertise in various terrorist agencies had won him to position that Bennett had dreamed about since he was a rookie. But James Bennett could not envy Thompson's fortune, it had been incredible amounts of hard work and dedication that had won him this position and Bennett had to admire that.  
  
Thompson removed his spectacles and smiled at Bennett, a slight trace of irony on his lips.  
  
"Well, at least you knocked this time, James."  
  
Bennett scowled in return, hating to be addressed by his first name.  
  
"You have information regarding Project 000146, Captain Thompson?"  
  
"As a matter of fact, I don't. What I intend to tell you has more to do with Project 000247 in the Department of Technology. Have you heard of it?"  
  
"No," said Bennett shortly, not really caring about anything that went on in that department as long as his laser was working.  
  
"Well, then, allow me to introduce Dr. McCarlin, director of Project 000247, a.k.a. the Eta Project."  
  
A young woman that Bennett had not really noticed sitting in a lounge chair in the corner stood up. He studied her for a moment, taking in the lines around her eyes and several strands of grey highlighting her shoulder length blond hair, and estimated her to be in her late forties. She peered at him with intelligent dark eyes, and extended her hand to him, which he shook quickly then thrust back into his pocket with the air of one who is allergic to friendly greetings.  
  
"Pleased to meet you, Dr. McCarlin," he said as a matter of habit more than out of politeness. "I admit I'm curious. The Eta Project. . . certainly not another synthoid?"  
  
"I know, you'd think we'd had enough trouble with the last couple," she said, smirking. "But seriously, Project Eta is just what is needed around here. Infiltration Unit Eta is more powerful and more intelligent than Zeta was. Its defenses are also many times stronger. Highly unlikely that it could be subject to terrorist programming, as its body will reject any foreign, non-NSA module placed in its system. Eta also has a strong 'dedication' to its missions; it will not terminate a mission once it sets out until all objectives have been completed. No terrorist could trick Eta."  
  
"Isn't that dangerous? What if Eta's primary objectives were inaccurate?"  
  
Thompson smiled and answered this time. "Let's hope that never happens!"  
  
Bennett frowned. How cocky the Gotham Agents were! You could never be completely sure that a mission would go off without a hitch; he had learned this after years on the field. But it would be pointless to try and convince McCarlin.  
  
"Fascinating as this all is, what does this have to do with me? I work strictly on 000146."  
  
Thompson peered at him through his spectacles. "Eta's primary objective is the termination of The Zeta Project, as a matter of fact."  
  
Bennett opened and closed in mouth in sudden rage. "What! Your Eta may be powerful, but Zeta has proven it has a knack for escaping difficult situations. Do you remember the Infiltration Unit 7 incident? We know of two attempts of IU7 to destroy Zeta and suspect there were more. . .every time, the infiltration unit was badly damaged, and Zeta escaped. What makes you think Eta will fare differently?  
  
Dr. McCarlin smiled falsely. "Two reasons. One: the IU7 was an inferior synthoid without the position of even limited A.I. Eta has an advanced A.I. module that gives it the ability to make intelligent decisions and formulate plans. It has cunning, to personify it, more so even than IU Zeta. Two: As Eta is far more advanced, it is no longer necessary to reprogram Zeta, an attempt that has failed numerous times."  
  
"You don't mean-"  
  
"Yes, Bennett, Eta's primary objective is the irreparable destruction of Infiltration Unit Zeta."  
  
Bennett stared at her for a long time, millions of thoughts running through his head. Somehow, destroying Zeta seemed so much worse than reprogramming him. Of course, the synthoid was a menace, a danger. . .but even of that Bennett wasn't always certain. Always nagging at the corner of his mind was the tiny seed of doubt. He remembered overhearing the words of Dr. Selig, the confession that he had equipped the synthoid with a conscience module; one that, the doctor said, had never activated. Yet it was possible, just possible, that Zeta was telling the truth. Perhaps the synthoid was truly innocent, but Bennett couldn't really afford that.  
  
Bennett had poured his life into the Zeta Project. The relentless persecution of the synthoid had caused him to ignore his personal life for the past two years, and that damage was irrevocable. His wife, finally frustrated, had left him 6 months ago, taking their adolescent son with her. On the rare occasion that he was able to visit James Bennett Jr., he found that the boy had grown considerably, and Bennett no longer knew his own son.  
  
And then came the doubt, the possibility that it had all been for nothing, that he had been wrong. Bennett wanted Zeta brought in for reprogramming. He wanted the strange module to be identified as Brother's Day property. He wanted Zeta to return to his work of destroying the NSA's enemies, instead of his disconcerting habit of endangering himself to protect the innocent. It must be some sort of Brother's Day trick, he had convinced himself. Bennett did not know what he would do if Zeta was destroyed and he was forced to live forever with that nagging doubt. But this option was quickly becoming a reality, and he was powerless to stop it. IU Eta would destroy the renegade synthoid, and the NSA would move on. But Zeta was an agitating but familiar constant in Bennett's life. His mission had become a part of him. He wouldn't forget so easily.  
  
"Very well, Dr. McCarlin. Will my services still be necessary to the project?"  
  
"Yes, we will keep you on lookout for Zeta. I will be accompanying you and your agents to observe Eta in action and to help in the event that something goes wrong."  
  
For the second time that day, Bennett nearly felt a smile cross his lips. "Something go wrong? Not with Eta! It has a cunning module!" he said, voice thick with sarcasm.  
  
"Synthoids get bugs, Agent Bennett. That's why I've created a failsafe, to deactivate Eta in an emergency. But I doubt I'll need it. So let's get going! The Eta is already in pursuit."  
  
He nodded at Captain Thompson, and walked out the door, beckoning for McCarlin to follow. 


	2. EMail Response

Mass Transit Station 5, Denver, Colorado, February 3rd, 3:53:29 pm  
  
The transcontinental 367 Magnet Train pulled into the Mass Transit station on the outskirts of Denver, behind schedule due to weather conditions. The doors opened, and passengers flooded out of the cars, toting baggage of all sorts, hurrying off to make other connections. Within a matter of minutes, nearly everyone was off the train. All that remained were two business people of some unknown profession, wearing crisp suits and carrying leather briefcases. A very tall elderly man with a cane was being helped off the train by his associate, a plain dark haired woman with an olive complexion. Soon, they were off and the train thundered into the loading dock. The woman continued to guide her elderly companion, her hand never leaving his although he seemed to manage well on his own. His walk was a bit stiffer than most other people's, but he gave the impression of strength rather than frailty.  
  
The two shyly made their way out, keeping near walls and watching the crowded hallway around them, looking for someone they expected but did not want to see. But this phantom threat never came, so they instead approached a taxi. The elderly man held the door open for his companion with a rather chivalrous air about him, and then he climbed in after her without letting go of her hand.  
  
'What is your destination today, sir and ma'am?' spoke the cheery mechanical voice of the driver bot.  
  
"District B, The Hotel Colorado on Street Block 3460, the side entrance, please," returned than man in a voice that was rather deep for someone his age.  
  
'Based on weather induced traffic conditions, we will arrive in approximately 20 minutes. Please enjoy your ride."  
  
A thick dark shield rolled up, separating passengers from driver save a small intercom. The man flipped the switch on the speaker to off, and removed his hand from the young woman's. Instantly, her body flickered and the illusion that had been there was gone, leaving a pretty if slightly scruffy blond teenager in her place.  
  
"Uhhg, I hate holograms! Do you know how weird it is to try to glance in a window, just to see your reflection, and some strange woman is staring back?"  
  
"I'm quite familiar with holograms, and I've never experienced the sensation you describe. It's natural for me."  
  
"Yeah, well, that's just you, Zee. And changing holograms every two seconds creeps me out."  
  
His outer appearance evaporated as well, leaving a man of indeterminate age, most likely early twenties, dark hair, and wide dark blue eyes sitting on the seat next to her.  
  
"Is this less creepy, Ro?"  
  
"Much better," she grinned, and then glanced out the window.  
  
"Oh, great. It's practically a blizzard out there," she said without enthusiasm.  
  
"I think the snow is beautiful. I enjoy trying to make out the various snowflake patterns as they fall. They can be amazingly intricate."  
  
"Yeah, I'll bet snow is great when you can't feel the cold," she whined. "It's freezing here!"  
  
"Actually, the temperature is 12 degrees Fahrenheit, considerably below freezing. Didn't you bring that leather jacket you insisted we buy in San Francisco?"  
  
She pulled her new jacket closer, but still shivered slightly. "It isn't that warm."  
  
"Yes, I did tell you that the jacket with synthetic fibers would be more practical, but you said that you 'wouldn't be caught dead' in that coat."  
  
She ignored him, knowing he didn't mean to say I-told-you-so, he was merely stating a fact. Synthoids were big on facts. She turned away and watched the snow fall to the ground. No one other than Zee could care about something as simple as snowflakes, but if you really paid attention, it was beautiful. She sat for a moment, enchanted with the soft patterns the frost made on the window, but another gust of cold air caught her by surprise.  
  
"Remind me again why we're here, instead of kicking back all winter in Hawaii?"  
  
"We're answering Bucky's e-mail, of course," he said, a holographic letter suddenly appearing in his hand for Ro to see.  
  
Hey!  
  
I thought you might miss me, so I arranged for us to meet in Denver on the third. You've got reservations at the Colorado. Name is Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Thought Ro might like that. I have some info you might like to have from a certain NSA file. See ya then!  
  
Ro rolled her eyes and sighed. Typical twerp, she could practically hear his smug voice reading it to her. Mr. and Mrs. Smith. He could just not get over the fact that she didn't like him, she thought, more to satisfy herself than as some eternal truth. But Bucky, she had to admit, was good in a pinch, and his info could come in handy. So it wasn't so bad that they had to go find him.  
  
'Sir and Ma'am', came the annoyingly cheerful mechanical voice as the divider panel rose,' we have arrived at your destination. The service charge for 23.2 miles comes to 30 creds'.  
  
Zee swiped his CredCard through the machine in front of him, and then opened the door for Ro. A blast of icy air greeted her, and she clutched the synthoid's arm tightly. She could feel the artificial substance to his hologram, but he lacked body heat, in this weather making him feel almost cold. She pulled away and opened the door to the lobby, allowing herself to slump onto the comfortable couch in front of a heater made to look like an actual fire, and wait while Zee checked in.  
  
Several minutes later he came to her.  
  
"Are you alright?"  
  
She shrugged. "Yeah, I'm fine, but I'm definitely not going outside again. Hawaii is starting to sound really good right now."  
  
His young face broke out into a rather unconvincing grin, what she could swear was a cheap imitation of her own smile. It made her a little sad, how his little emotions always seemed so insincere. He tried so hard to get it right, but it seemed that Zee could never really be a human. And while it was true that his rather attractive hologram and his kind nature made her sometimes forget what he was, these moments didn't last long, they were always spoiled by something he did that was purely robotic.  
  
She felt genuinely sorry for her friend, because for all his efforts he would probably never be more than an imitation. And a bit sorry for herself- Zee was the best thing that had ever happened to her, but it'd be nice if he had at least a bit of a sense of humor.  
  
"Ro? Bucky should be waiting in the hotel restaurant. Are you hungry?" he asked, breaking the awkward pause. Ro glanced up at his earnest, friendly face, and felt rather guilty for her disloyal thoughts.  
  
"Yeah, starving. Let's go, tin man." 


	3. Deadly Enemy

Hotel Colorado, Room 321, Denver, Colorado, February 3rd, 5:02:21 pm  
  
"What did you want to tell us, Bucky?" Zee peered at the young teenager from the couch of a roomy hotel suite. Ro sat beside him, concentrating on a cup of hot chocolate and seeming very disinterested in whatever had to be said. Bucky grinned at Zeta for a moment, not saying anything, instead allowing the tension to build until Ro was forced to look up.  
  
"So, what is it already?"  
  
"Okay, okay. I'll tell you. I've been busy lately, doing some hacking, and decided to check up on your NSA file. You can thank me later."  
  
"Oh, yeah, I'm so grateful. I really care what it says in my file," Ro said flatly, rolling her eyes.  
  
"Do you want to hear what I've found, or not?"  
  
"Alright, already! Just say it!"  
  
"Well, there were some really interesting reports on you. Pages of psychoanalysis. Some pretty funny stuff on why you're so unstable all the time. I could download, but you probably wouldn't be interested. Besides, you'd just make me delete it, and it's just too entertaining." He grinned, enjoying the effect he had on her.  
  
"Twip! Did you bring us out here just to bug me?"  
  
"Nah, there's more. But I'm not sure I feel like telling you," he said in mock hurt. "You called me a twip!"  
  
"If you don't tell me right now-" Ro's threat was interrupted by a knock at the door.  
  
"Room service!" rang the cheery voice of a maid.  
  
"Ooh, refills on hot chocolate!" Ro grinned and stood up, only to be firmly sat down again by Zee.  
  
"What's your problem, tin man?"  
  
"Last time you ordered, it took 23.25 minutes to bring the hot chocolate to the room. It always takes at least 10 minutes for the delivery of food alone. However, it's only been 6 minutes and 32 seconds since you ordered."  
  
"Looks like somebody gets a tip today! Good service!"  
  
"No, something's wrong. Let me answer the door. You and Bucky hide until I tell you to come out," he commanded gently. The synthoid exchanged his hologram for that of a middle aged man in pajamas and saw Ro and Bucky off into the adjoining room. Glancing through the peephole, he saw an ordinary young woman and a tray with a small steaming pot on it.  
  
[Scanning contents. Contents Found: 35% Cocoa, 40% Sugar, and 25% milk. Ordinary Hot Chocolate]  
  
But he still could not shake a strange feeling about the maid. She looked normal enough, although she showed no sign of impatience at being made to wait. This was odd, as he had generally known humans to hate being made to wait a fraction of a second longer than necessary. But the reading from his substance sensors told him the same thing that the reading from his optometric sensors told him- she was an average young woman, no threat detected.  
  
He opened the door and smiled. "Sorry to keep you waiting," he said congenially. She stared back at him for a moment, then her hand shot out and grabbed his neck. He felt two snaky wires attach themselves to his body, easily going through the synthetic "substance" to his hologram.  
  
"Infiltration Unit Zeta. Please permit a systems shut down and hard drive erasure," came her strange metallic yet feminine voice.  
  
Zeta could feel every system in his body begin to shut itself down. His hologram emitter went out, leaving his metal body to go limp in her firm grasp.  
  
"Ro!" he shouted frantically. "Ro, she's a synthoid! Run!"  
  
Then, he dedicated what remained of his energy to countering the far more powerful programming that she was using to override his own system.  
  
Ro heard Zee cry, and, being Ro, did the opposite of what he asked. She poked her head out of the adjoining room and saw the maid, or where the maid had been. In her place was a large silvery synthoid with huge eyes like old fashioned camcorder lenses towering over the body of her friend.  
  
"Zee!" she whispered, attracting the attention of the frightening figure, who detached one arm from Zeta to point a silvery gun at Ro. The girl looked back, frozen like a deer in headlights, only to be pulled away by Bucky. The robot, seeing a teenage girl as no threat, went back to its task.  
  
"What the hell is that?"  
  
"The thing I brought you here to tell you about! Infiltration Unit Eta, a new synthoid with a death wish directed at Zeta."  
  
"What can we do?"  
  
"Run before it kills him and comes after us?"  
  
"No! I mean to save Zee! We can't let him die!"  
  
"How did I know you'd say that? We could try to jam its processors with an invention of mine. I know just the one. Probably won't be very effective without the right schematics-"  
  
"Gimme!"  
  
"Okay, hold on. Lucky for you, I haven't unpacked yet, or it would probably be in the other room." He shuffled through a duffel bag filled with wrinkled clothes that looked as though they hadn't been washed or folded in quite awhile.  
  
"Here we go!" he cried, pulling what looked like a control for an old fashioned vid-game from the bottom of his bag.  
  
"Hey! You told us you destroyed the blueprints for that!"  
  
"It's not like I was planning to use it on Zeta. It's just way too cool to throw away. Besides, it's a damn good thing I lied. It's not built to work on the Eta, but it should mess up its programs a bit. I just have to get as close to the frequency as I can. It can't be that different from Zeta's."  
  
Bucky flipped on the control and began changing a small knob, trying to find the right frequency. Ro felt a bit useless, sitting on the floor trying to see if Zee was alright, and if the Eta was coming for them. The Eta's programming dictated that it would not go after its next targets until the first was destroyed, and Zeta, despite his inferior defense systems, was managing to hold out. But Ro didn't know this, and she hated just sitting while her best friend was in trouble.  
  
After a few seconds that seemed like an eternity, she saw Bucky slide over next to her, pointing his remote control at the intruder. The large synthoid twitched for a moment, unable to control its body, but not quite in Bucky's control, either.  
  
[System error! Unauthorized program present!]  
  
Eta removed its wires from the lifeless body of Zeta, its large eyes scanning the room before landing on Bucky.  
  
[Threat detected. Possible mission compromise. Eliminate threat.]  
  
The robot charged forward, raising several silver guns from the panels in its arms. Bucky frantically began playing with the remote, causing Eta to lose control over her weapons and to begin firing randomly about the room, destroying the couch they had been sitting on less than 5 minutes ago, the table, and the wall separating the adjoining room from the main room. This last blast threw Ro and Bucky across the room, Ro landing against the wall with a painful thud.  
  
She watched Bucky pull himself up from the opposite wall, and the control skid across the room towards herself. Eta saw this and reached for the remote, but Ro was there first. Unfortunately, she soon realized that controlling something without the schematics was a lot more complicated, and she had no idea how to work it. She couldn't quite control Eta, so it advanced at her in strange, jerky movements.  
  
Ro backed away, still playing around with the remote, and noticed Bucky crawling in the direction of Zeta. But before she could wonder if he would be able to fix Zee, she felt a powerful grip on her arm. She continued to press buttons, fighting the Eta's grasp. It let go and she ran, but it continued to follow her, slowly, still fighting the intruding program. Ro, watching, did not notice she had reached the back wall and was letting herself get trapped in a corner.  
  
The Eta grabbed her once again and flung her painfully against the wall, wrenching the control out of her hands and crushing it in its metallic grip, still moving in odd jerky movements but at least in control. Ro felt a stream of blood trickle down her cheek, and slumped against the wall in pain. She moaned, and watched through fuzzy vision as the malfunctioning Eta raised a powerful blade to kill her- and then the blade was struck down by Zee's arm. Eta turned to fire but Zee was too quick, using his momentary advantage to knock the other synthoid off balance.  
  
Eta fired, and a white beam struck Zeta's chest, burning a gaping hole in the metal, but then Ro shoved the cabinet next to her housing to mini-bar at the synthoid, and it fell over on the ground.  
  
"Look at me!" Ro shouted, grinning broadly but wobbling a bit as she struggled to remain standing upright. Zeta turned to her and put his arm against her back to support her, gently wiping the drying blood off her face.  
  
"Are you alright?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm great," said Ro in a slightly trembling voice. She propped her head against Zee's chest, and didn't object when he lifted her off her feet to lay draped over his arms. She felt tired, and was asleep by the time Zeta had left the hotel with Bucky in the hologram of a man carrying a duffel bag in his arms, clutching it as though it was the most precious thing in the world. 


	4. New Ally

Motel 6, Room 12, Denver, Colorado, February 4th, 8:22:16 pm  
  
Ro's eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the light. She closed them again, her body still sluggish with sleep. Ro buried her head down into the sort white covers that were pulled tightly up to her chin. She couldn't remember how she got wherever she was- the last thing she could recall was Zee lifting her up, and just resting her head on his chest for a second. She must have fallen asleep, and he had brought her here. She smiled to herself and opened her eyes again, pulling herself upright and yawning. Sitting up brought a throb of pain to her temple, but she ignored it.  
  
"Hello."  
  
"Oh, morning," Ro said, a little shocked at first when she realized that Zee was sitting on the end of her bed.  
  
"How are you feeling?" he asked gently, the tips of his fingers brushing her forehead, which was- she realized for the first time- bandaged. He must have done that, too.  
  
"I've got a horrible headache, but I'm okay. How long have you been there?"  
  
"Since we arrived. I wanted to watch you tonight. You hit your head very hard."  
  
Ro grinned, feeling another throb in her temple. "Don't I know it. Where are we?"  
  
"A motel near the airport. We should catch a plane as soon as you feel ready. I doubt Eta will be offline for long." He purposely avoided her eyes when Eta was mentioned, making it obvious to Ro that something wasn't quite right.  
  
"You okay, tin man?"  
  
"Yes. I suffered some damage last night, but after we brought you here, Bucky finished repairing me," he smiled at her, again a fake smile but this time Ro knew it was fake with good reason.  
  
"No, Zee, I mean you look sad."  
  
He paused in thought before answering. "It's nothing, Ro. . .except. . .if he had taken a few seconds longer-"  
  
Ro didn't take long to figure out what that was all about. Zee had been just in the nick of time to stop Eta from killing her, only due to the lucky fact that Bucky repaired him quickly. It had been a very close call, and she knew from previous experiences that Zee felt a bit guilty about letting her put herself in danger.  
  
"But he didn't, and I'm fine, Zee."  
  
"Eta will return, and I might not be able to protect you next time. If anything should happen to you, Ro. . ." He sighed. "I don't like any of this. My sensors couldn't detect that it wasn't human, and it is very powerful. More so than IU7 was."  
  
"Hey, we'll manage. We always do." she said, smiling reassuringly and brushing the hair out of his face, something she enjoyed doing even though it wasn't real. She wanted to think of something to say to assure Zee that nothing was going to happen to her. But truthfully, Ro knew it was only luck that had kept them both going thus far. Oh, they had had terrible luck most of the time- fission reactions, tornadoes, twelve year old brats, but in the end they always managed to scrape through by nothing other than dumb luck.  
  
"As long as the Eta is looking for me, anyone in its path is in danger. Even you. Hurting you is the last thing I want."  
  
She frowned at him, annoyed. "Zee, stop it. Whatever the Eta does isn't your fault. Don't even try to blame that on yourself! And you'd really better not try to leave me again. That's the last thing that I want. Promise me you won't try anything stupid?"  
  
He smiled. "I promise I won't leave, but it isn't a necessary promise. I would miss you too much. I'm very lucky to have you," he said almost shyly. She frowned and almost made a sarcastic remark about his sudden sentimentality, but thought better of it. "Will you make me a promise too, Ro? Promise to be careful."  
  
"Me? Careful?" she grinned, but noticed his expression. "Alright, alright. . .I suppose you've got yourself a promise, tin man." She grinned and he put his arm around her shoulder. Ro thought about last night, how good it was to be able to count on him to take care of her, and she lay her head against him again, enjoying the feeling of security he provided. Although she had faith in her ability to take care of herself, Ro had never felt truly safe before Zee came along. She smiled affectionately at him, but gradually, she pulled away.  
  
"We should really get outta here. We don't want the NSA to find us, on top of everything else."  
  
"If you're feeling well enough to travel, then we should leave right away. Where do you suggest we go next?" Ro thought for a moment, but a knock on the door interrupted her train of thought.  
  
"Not again! Zee, it's not the Eta?"  
  
"Unlikely. But I'm not sure. Bucky, perhaps?" Zeta did not look convinced. "He said he was going to leave town. Ro, maybe you should hide and let me see who it is."  
  
"Do you have a screw loose?" Ro snapped. "There is no way this is going to turn into The Hotel Incident part 2! Is there a back way out of this place?"  
  
"Not that I know of. There seems to be a hallway behind the plaster in the closet, but it hasn't been accessed in years. I'm reluctant to try it, as I don't know where it leads. Perhaps-" At that, the door opened, revealing a young woman probably 5-10 years older than Ro. Shiny auburn hair was tied back in a ponytail that reached her shoulders, her face was slightly flushed with sweat, and she stood, staring impatiently.  
  
"Are you Zeta?" she asked of Zee, who was now scanning her curiously.  
  
"Yes, who exactly are you?"  
  
"Eve Jones. I'm a tech operative for the NSA."  
  
Zee looked nervous, and grabbed on to Ro to prepare for a getaway.  
  
"If you go outside, you'll both be shot. You're completely surrounded. If you don't believe me, look for yourself."  
  
He actually did believe her, but nevertheless he looked outside. His temperature sensors detected several warm bodies crouched in the parking lot surrounding the motel.  
  
"Why are you telling me this?"  
  
"Because I want to help you. I know you're telling the truth- well, at least that you might be. I was one of the scientists on the Eta Project- I programmed its knowledge of you for the mission. I realized that if you're telling the truth, there may be a way to prove you're innocent."  
  
He looked blankly for a moment. Here was the chance that he had been waiting for, the inkling of hope that he had lost after Dr. Selig's death. "How?"  
  
"We're running out of time. Bennett' agents will be here shortly. Do you trust me?"  
  
Ro frowned. "We know absolutely nothing about you! How are we supposed to trust you?" Zeta silenced her with a look.  
  
"Ro, she may be our only chance. We have no choice."  
  
"Okay, then, what's the big plan?" Ro said, more edge to her voice than usual.  
  
"There's an old abandoned stairwell that will lead around to the other side. I don't think Bennett's there. We can get to it through the old hallway that was blocked off when the closets were remodeled"  
  
"Oh, yes, I wondered where that hallway went," Zee remarked more to himself than to Eve. They walked to the back closet, and with a quick slice from his laser-cutter, Zeta created a hole in the plaster large enough for the three of them to crawl through. Everything in the hallway was nearly pitch black, and Ro kept brushing against cobwebs.  
  
"Ergh," she muttered quietly, pulling one off from her that felt as though it contained a live spider. She was shushed harshly by Eve. Ro made a rude gesture, but the only one who could see in the dim light was Zeta. He catalogued it away, intending to inquire as to its meaning later. Finally, they reached a large white door, surprisingly unlocked, which led to an old, rickety staircase. The three began to make their way down, when a voice rang from below.  
  
"Zeta! Freeze!" the sound of a laser shot accompanying. Zee stepped back, unsure of what to do. A very smug Agent West was fast approaching.  
  
"Rush! I've found them! They're on the stairs!" he shouted down to the lot below. Eve grabbed Zeta's arm and pulled him onto a landing. Another door was there, leading to the hallway on the first floor.  
  
"We could go this way, but it's locked!" Eve said in a panic. "Can you open it?" Zeta swung a fist and the hinges collapsed against the force. Ro chuckled in admiration, but West started running.  
  
"Don't try to get away, Zeta!" he shouted and fired, knocking himself over the edge of the staircase, the shot missing but hitting the landing that Eve was balanced against. She stumbled over the side, but was quickly grabbed by Zeta's arm and pulled onto solid ground. She looked at Zee for a minute, blankly.  
  
"You're not at all like I expected."  
  
Zeta opened his mouth to respond, but Ro interrupted. "Hello? Let's get to know each other later!" she screamed, exasperated, tugging them both off the landing and into the hallway. They reached a window and Zee pulled it open, first lowering Ro and Eve to the ground then jumping down himself.  
  
"The navy blue one's mine!" said Eve, pointing to a navy sports hovercar. She opened the doors and hopped behind the wheel, Zeta climbing in beside her and Ro, feeling rather ignored, pulling herself into the back. The car took off, leaving the agents to frantically pile into the NSA van. But by the time Rush retrieved a no longer smug West from falling off the edge of the stairwell, and the keys that West had somehow lost in the process were found, the three fugitives were gone. 


	5. Jealousy

Interstate 25, Rocky Mountain Preserve, Colorado-Wyoming, 7:29:04 pm  
  
They had been driving in silence since they left Denver several hours ago, heading steadily northward. Ro leaned her head against the icy cold window, her breath making patterns on the gathering layer of frost. She inattentively watched the landscape go by, changing from the developed city to more rural towns, and finally into the forested area they drove through now, some kind of natural park or something.  
  
It was a rare sight, wilderness untouched by technology in 2043, and she was fascinated at first by the numerous dark pines, and the snow clinging to the soft yellow aspens. But soon the blizzard thickened, clouding her view, and she discovered that no matter how many miles you drive into the wilderness, it still looks very much the same.  
  
She turned her attention to the front of the car, where she could see Zee's head directly in front of her, blocking her view of the windshield. His neck was about eye level towards her, and she boredly studied it. It was sort of interesting, in a weird way.  
  
Going down his neck were a number of jagged dark hairs, randomly scattered, jutting out in many directions, giving him the impression that he hadn't had trim in awhile. While it seemed so very natural, every single one of those hairs was meticulously placed to give that sensation, hardly random. She wondered whether the hairs ever "grew," if he would elongate them as time went by, if they were ever positioned differently or if they were always in the same place. The latter seemed more likely.  
  
She had never really noticed before the detail that Zee put into his hologram. There was a small mole just peeking out under a strand of hair, his neck muscles moved ever so slightly when he took a breath or spoke, and even the collar of his navy trench coat was rumpled and the tag was jutting out a bit. It amazed her that someone would put thought into making a trench coat look rumpled. How many annoying little details passed through his mind every second? Even right now he was staring at the road directly ahead, looking at the scenery, but at the same time thinking seven hundred inane little thoughts.  
  
Zeta continued taking in the wilderness, categorizing every tree and animal he saw, bringing to mind their scientific and common names. At the same time, however, most of his attention was focused on Eve, on the hope that she might present to him, but also on her in general.  
  
She was a strange woman, not alike Ro at all. Perhaps it was Ro who was a strange woman, in which case he would have to do some recategorizing on human behaviors. He had thought it natural for humans to talk incessantly more for the sake of breaking the silence than the actual topic of conversation.  
  
However, he told himself, this wasn't always true, not even with Ro. He was intimidated by Eve's silence and her absolute concentration on the road ahead, very unlike Ro who would get bored or distracted within minutes of attempting to concentrate on something. But in his experience of Ro, it would be typical to ignore all other passengers and purposely attempt to concentrate on something else if she were angry.  
  
But why would Eve be angry? As far as he knew, he hadn't done anything offensive, and Ro hadn't spoken, something that generally helped to not offend other humans. He didn't find anything offensive about Ro, but her dark sarcasm sometimes put her at odds with other humans. Still, it was possible that there had been a cause for anger that he had missed.  
  
Maybe Ro was angry too, she had been very silent as well. He glanced back at her, and she let the corner of her mouth turn up in a small smile, before pretending to stifle an elaborate yawn, a gesture to show that she was bored. He smiled back, and then turned to Eve.  
  
He wanted very much to ask her about her plans to prove his innocence, but he did not wish to provoke her, and it seemed that asking questions to an angry Ro always produced short hostile answers or long rants that really had nothing to do with the question. Either way, it would be more fulfilling to save the question until the mood passed. But Ro was never angry with him for long, and Eve had ignored him now for nearly three hours.  
  
Perhaps he had to be the one to break the silence? He wished for a way to ask Ro's advice, but there didn't seem to be a way to do it privately. He would have to deal with this on his own, something that he couldn't stand. Human behaviors never ceased to puzzle him. He cleared his throat, even though the only two people in the car knew that he didn't really have a throat to clear.  
  
"Eve?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Would you mind if I ask you a question?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Alright, then. How do you plan to prove my innocence?"  
  
"I was wondering why you hadn't asked yet," she paused, as if thinking. "Do you know the procedures involved in the building process of an NSA regulated synthoid?"  
  
"I am not aware of them. I would assume the security would be very high?"  
  
Eve nodded, her ponytail bobbing. "Extremely high. The NSA can't risk that some sort of terrorist operative could somehow modify the synthoid's programming. Of course, even the doctors themselves are not aware of many of the procedures"  
  
"Such as?"  
  
"There is always an undercover operative on the design team. That was my duty on the Eta Project. This operative monitors all the scientists, and scans for holograms. There are also hidden security cameras that always monitor the synthoid, and run a diagnosis on any programs installed during the building process. If they don't fit into the original blueprints, the program is scanned for anything dangerous, and then catalogued away if nothing is found. This program fills with data quickly, as last minute designs and modules are always a part of the building process."  
  
"But, in my case, one of the data logs would show that a conscience module had been installed in my system."  
  
"Doubtful. Dr. Selig probably disguised the program as something else. But if the diagnosis on the programming were compared to the programming of the actual module, we could prove that it was the same, and had activated at the time when you ran from the NSA."  
  
Zeta looked away from her for a moment, at the road ahead which she was strangely not even watching. They were coming to a clearing in the woods, and a sign informed him that the nearest town, Coal Creek, Wyoming, was less than 60 miles away.  
  
"Where are these files located?"  
  
"Possibly Gotham Headquarters."  
  
"No. Bucky would have found them."  
  
"Bucky?"  
  
"Our friend." He heard Ro snicker to make clear her own feelings about Bucky, his first indication that she was actually listening. Her head was leaning against the window, and her eyelids were closed, so he had assumed she was sleeping.  
  
"Sometimes he hacks into the NSA, and tries to find information to help us. If any relevant files on me were located there, he would have found them. He learned to bypass NSA security systems a long time ago."  
  
Eve stared blankly at the road ahead. Again, Zeta wondered if she was offended by something, but she turned to him again in a moment.  
  
"Then I don't know where they are."  
  
"Oh." Zeta looked up at the sky, fluffy clouds streaked with pink and a deep purple, the first few stars splayed out against the growing presence of navy blue.  
  
"I'm sorry. But I promise, we can find them. I'm going to help you get your freedom, Zeta."  
  
"You can call me Zee, if you like," he smiled at her.  
  
"Okay, I promise I'm going to help you, Zee."  
  
"Thank you, Eve. Even though we just, met, I can already tell you'll be a good friend-"  
  
"Yeah, I hate to interrupt this touching moment and everything, but I haven't eaten anything since hot chocolate yesterday, and I'm not looking forward to being cramped up in this car with the two of you all night. So maybe we should pull over in Coal Creek, if it's not too much trouble, since the next town is hours away." Her voice had a very sharp edge to it.  
  
Zeta rarely experienced annoyance, but this was definitely annoying. Now that he had managed to solve the mystery of Eve's moods, Ro was suddenly mad for no apparent reason. He supposed it was because he was ignoring her. Now that he thought about it, he felt badly for not paying attention to her. She was his friend too, and she was most likely still suffering the effects of last night's injuries.  
  
"I'm sorry, Ro. We'll pull over and find you someplace to eat, alright Eve?"  
  
They pulled, several minutes later, into the parking lot of an old diner. He was deliberate in helping Ro out of the car, but this only served to annoy her further.  
  
"Zee, I can get out of a car without your help. Go make sure Eve is okay or something," she complained, putting emphasis on Eve's name.  
  
"But I'm fairly sure Eve is capable of getting out of a car without assistance as well," he said confusedly.  
  
She sighed exasperatedly. "You can be so clueless sometimes!" he heard her mutter under her breath.  
  
Zeta hated for Ro to be angry with him, but he assured himself that it was a common enough occurrence for human adolescents, especially ones with irregular sleep patterns such as Ro. She would most likely feel better after eating and sleeping the required amount of hours.  
  
Once inside, Ro sat down on the edge of the booth. Eve and Zeta sat across from her, and an elderly waitress wearing large amounts of mascara came to take their order. Ro ordered a cheeseburger and a large root beer, and Zee himself ordered a milkshake. Eve waved away the waitress with a "Sorry, had a big lunch," and a sweet smile.  
  
After several minutes, the waitress returned with the food. Ro's temper was, as Zeta had predicted, ebbed as she ate, ignoring Eve who was glancing out the window with an air of impatience, and Zee who was peering at her curiously, stirring around his milkshake, pausing occasionally to place his "lips" on the straw and changing his hologram to look as though the drink was disappearing.  
  
This was a technique he had developed after a rather nasty incident where a drunken cook in a similar diner took it as a personal insult that he refused to order. Unfortunately, this technique wasn't completely flawless. After they left, the waitress would be very surprised to find a full chocolate milkshake where an empty one had been, but it was better than trying to talk his way out of a fight with a man who would be enraged to find he could just as effectively punch Zeta as he could a large army tank.  
  
Zeta gave the waitress his CredCard and she scanned it, gratefully accepting his gracious tip. The three then checked into the nearby motel. Ro flopped down on the mattress of a springy twin bed and sighed. Zeta cautiously walked over to her and sat down next to her. She no longer seemed angry, just tired, and maybe a little sad. It puzzled him.  
  
"Hi, Ro."  
  
"Where's Eve?"  
  
"She went to purchase a new car. It will be safer than driving hers, which has a registered license plate."  
  
"Oh." There was a long pause. "So, what's up, tin man?"  
  
"Are you alright? You seem sad, and later you were angry."  
  
"It's nothing, Zee, I'm just tired. Well, also-" she stopped abruptly.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
Ro shook her head, thinking as if not sure she should speak. Finally, she said softly "I really don't like Eve."  
  
Zee sat back, letting the surprise show on his face.  
  
"Why? I like her!"  
  
"I kinda noticed."  
  
"But-"  
  
"Know what, Zee? Forget I said anything. It doesn't matter." She turned away, not looking at him. "G'Night," she said finally, pulling the covers over her head.  
  
"Good night, Ro," he said, knowing she wasn't asleep yet, only pretending. He watched her for a long time, listening to the soft sound of her breathing under the covers until her breaths became slow and steady and he knew she was really asleep. Not long after, Eve returned.  
  
"Hey, Zee. I made a deal with a car dealer. He'll trade cars with us. His is kind of run down, but he doesn't have much of a selection."  
  
"Are you going to sleep, Eve?"  
  
"Nope, not really tired."  
  
He looked at her for a minute, her last statement possibly confirming his suspicions.  
  
"Who are you Eve? Really?"  
  
"I told you, I'm Eve Jones, in charge of mission programming on the Eta Project. Your friend."  
  
"No, you aren't human. I suspect you are an android, is this correct?"  
  
Eve looked horrified, as if she had just been caught in the act of a crime. She sighed deeply, and turned to him, large green eyes pleading. "Yeah. . .Yeah, I am. Look, Zee, I know I lied, but I really do want to help you. I just thought that if I told you I was a robot, you'd think I was sent to destroy you."  
  
Zeta smiled warmly at her, to show his intentions. "No. I don't believe you were. I'm not sure why. Just. . .a feeling."  
  
Eve smiled back at him, placing and arm on his shoulder and looking up at him with an almost adoring expression. "Zee, I really did do work on the Eta Project. I was sent to track your activities, as research. But, everywhere I went, I heard great things about you. I didn't want to see you turned into the NSA. I'm like you, because I don't want to see innocent people. . .or synthoids. . .hurt. We can get our freedom together, Zee!"  
  
He looked at her a moment, his face blank and expressionless, thoughts running through his head. This was more than he expected. Living. . .well, not exactly. . .proof that a machine could have emotions and feelings, that everything he was couldn't be the result of some mistake or terrorist module because she was that way, too. She was someone who would understand how it felt to be a sentient machine in a human world.  
  
"Yes, we can," he said, knowing that he sounded stupid but unsure of what would be more appropriate. Then, there was the question he wanted to ask. He worried momentarily whether it would be tactful, but then remembered that she was robotic, too- for once, he did not have to worry about offending her through some misunderstanding or mistake. "But, Eve. . .the files, were they real?"  
  
And as he predicted, she wasn't offended by this diversion from their more meaningful conversation. She simply gave him a small, hopeful smile. "There were some on the Eta Project. I don't know about you, but we can hope, can't we?"  
  
He smiled in response, but another thought came to mind. Ro would hate this. She already disliked Eve. If she found out Eve was an android, she might not want to believe Eve was good. He didn't have any proof himself, just a feeling. It was a new experience for him, to believe in something without logic behind it, merely emotion. He rather liked it, and he didn't want Ro to ruin that for him. So as strange and wrong as it felt for him to even consider lying to Ro, he made a decision.  
  
"Eve? Don't tell Ro you're an android."  
  
Eve had no expression of remorse on her face when she said simply "Ro isn't very fond of me, is she?"  
  
He didn't really want to answer the question, but lying would do no good. "She wouldn't like that you're an android. But don't mind her, she'll come to like you." He smiled reassuringly, although he wasn't sure this would be true. Ro was a mystery to him as always, but when she formulated an opinion on someone, she was very reluctant to give it up.  
  
"Zee? May I ask you a rather personal question?"  
  
"Yes," he responded automatically, having very few personal thoughts that he wished to keep to himself.  
  
"I've been rather puzzled by this. What is the benefit of travelling with Ro? She doesn't have any physical or intellectual qualities that really stand out as useful. And she isn't even a very nice person, so I don't see why you would choose her to travel with as opposed to any other human."  
  
Zee paused for a moment, contemplating the question. He knew this was one of those things he wished to keep to himself, mostly because he didn't understand. He was puzzled by it, bothered by it. He had never really stopped to think why he travelled with Ro, she was just a constant in his life. He knew that he wanted her with him, but it was very difficult to put the feeling into words, only strange thoughts that he deleted as soon as they appeared, assuming that they were bugs in his system.  
  
"I don't know," he admitted softly, frowning upon the sleeping figure of Ro. "I know it's more than just that she follows me, or that she was my first real friend. I think it's even more than she's always believed me and helped me. There's something about her that makes me feel so strange. Not in a bad way, exactly. . .I don't know what I would do if she wasn't there, if one day I didn't have her. I don't understand why, but I know that I would do anything for her."  
  
He sighs deeply, wishing that he could understand the strange phenomenon of Ro, or at least explain what exactly was so strange about it. He rather curiously scanned the sleeping form and knew that he liked what he saw, but he could never explain or understand it. Finally, he gave up.  
  
"I should rest, as well. Do you need to?"  
  
"No, I'll stay up and look for information on the files. Goodnight, Zee."  
  
"Goodnight, Eve."  
  
Zeta sat down in his chair, hologram flickering out. Immediately, he was snoring. Eve remained awake, a small wire from her palm connected to the computer, eyes scanning the contents of the page as she downloaded it. 


	6. Androids

Coal Creek Motel, Coal Creek, Wyoming, 9:44:01 am, February 4th  
  
Ro lay in bed, the soft morning sun irritatingly warm on her face, and the brightness that she could sense even though her eyes were still closed kept her from ignoring it. She reached sleepily for the curtains on the window next to her and started to pull them closed, when the reflection in the window caught her eye. Eve was sitting and watching the computer screen, talking to Zee in a low voice so that Ro could not make out what she was saying. Zee stood behind her, listening and absorbing the data on the screen as well.  
  
Ro clenched her eyes shut in annoyance. They looked so warm, so. . .so right, sitting there together. How quickly Zeta accepted Eve as a new friend. It irked Ro deeply, as she had been under the impression that her relationship with Zeta was special, that he was somehow hers. She'd liked that- there had never been anyone before that she could feel sole possession of. But apparently there was nothing exclusive about their relationship after all. As soon as some new girl comes along, Ro might as well pack her bags for all that she was needed.  
  
Had she said last night that she disliked Eve? Now she hated her in that way where her anger and hatred was so strong, she just needed to hurt something, to make something else suffer. The word "jealousy" flashed through Ro's mind, but she dismissed it. After all, what was there to be jealous over?  
  
She rolled over and closed her eyes, letting the two continue their search, completely oblivious to her. That's gratitude for ya, she grumbled, you follow a robot around for two years and he abandons you for some trampy scientist.  
  
She heard the door shut, startling her, and she glanced over again. Zee had left to who knows where, leaving her alone with Eve. She would like to mess Eve up a bit, not really hurt her, just wipe that smile off her stupid face.  
  
Suddenly, Ro noticed Eve raise her hand to the computer, and hook a small snaky wire in her palm to the monitor.  
  
"What the hell?" she shouted, tumbling out of bed in a second. Eve's head shot around and her eyes focused on Ro.  
  
"You're. . .you're a robot-thing! What do you think you're doing? You probably want to turn Zee over to the NSA, don't you, you little-"  
  
Ro gave her a look conveying as much rage as possible, feeling torn inside. She hated Eve, and wanted so much for that hate to be justified, so she wouldn't have to accept what she was growing to suspect was the real cause for her animosity. Ro Rowen did not have silly crushes, especially not on synthoids. But if Eve really was working for the NSA. . . poor Zee! He had never really been betrayed before, not by someone who he had considered a friend. She could just picture that horrible kicked puppy look of his, full of shock that Eve would want to hurt him.  
  
"Listen to me, Ro; I do not work for the NSA."  
  
"Yeah, right! You get the hell outta here and leave Zee alone!"  
  
"Ro, calm down and listen to me."  
  
She glared, but realized that if Eve was a synthoid, she really didn't have much hope of fighting her.  
  
"Where's Zee?"  
  
"He went to get you breakfast. He'll be back shortly, and in the meanwhile, allow me to explain-"  
  
"No. I'm going to find Zee."  
  
She dashed out of the room, expecting resistance, but Eve just sat down and looked after her sadly. She flew down the hall, and nearly crashed into Zeta, carrying a tray of pancakes. He smiled cheerfully at her.  
  
"Good morning, Ro. I have breakfast for you. Do you want maple syrup on your pancakes?" he asked lightly, not seeing anything wrong with Ro dashing out of the room in a panic.  
  
"No, Zee, not right now. I have something important to tell you, and you aren't going to like it."  
  
"What is it?" he frowned.  
  
"Zee, I saw Eve on the computer and, well. . . she had this wire thingy coming out of her hand. It's because she's a robot, Zee," Ro frowned as well, looking genuinely sorry to say it. "We can't go back, she might try to hurt you or-"  
  
"Ro, I am well aware that she's an android."  
  
"What did you say?!?"  
  
"I said 'Ro, I am well aware-'"  
  
"I know! How long have you known this?"  
  
"I found out last night, after you went to sleep. But I've been suspecting it since the car ride yesterday."  
  
"And you didn't tell me?"  
  
"I knew you'd be upset."  
  
"Upset? Zee, she'll try to kill us!"  
  
"I don't think she will, Ro. She's good. She wants her freedom, like I do."  
  
Ro shot him a scathing look. "You're so gullible, tin man! She's tricked you! She doesn't care about your freedom; she cares about whatever mission she's on! She can't be trusted."  
  
"That's not true, Ro. Please don't speak that way about my friend." Ro was startled by a harsh edge to his voice. She had heard it before, but never spoken to her. Zee had always been nothing but sweet to her, even if she was mean to him. She didn't like to see him angry, because she knew from experience it took a lot to make Zee angry. Eve was breaking their friendship apart, and she couldn't bear it. She had no sympathies for Zee anymore; she just needed to convince him that she was the one he should be defending, not Eve.  
  
"Zee, you don't know anything about her, except that she's an android, and she lied to us."  
  
"I don't know anything about you, and I still took you with me. Do you think I shouldn't have?"  
  
"As a matter of fact, Zee, no. It wasn't the best decision. But you got lucky; I really wanted to help you. But not Eve. Believe me, I know people. You don't."  
  
"You're only saying that because you don't like Eve. You never even gave her a chance. If assuming the worst about people before you meet them is human, I'm very glad I'm not." She glared back at him, not responding, a look of exasperation on her face. He felt a strange desire to strike her, not enough to really hurt her, but just enough to remind her that he was a dangerous synthoid and it wasn't safe for her to get in his way. But the moment passed, and he felt guilty for wanting to hurt Ro. He frowned at her, and she sighed and spoke.  
  
"Maybe the reason I never liked Eve is because I could tell she's evil. Like I said, I know people."  
  
"She isn't evil, Ro. I like her, a lot."  
  
"I know you do! Well, I hope you and your best buddy Eve have fun, 'cause I don't really want to be a part of this anymore."  
  
"Ro. . ." he sighed, trying to control his emotion, not wanting to be angry with her. "Ro, please don't leave. Please don't make me choose between you and Eve."  
  
"Who would you choose, Zee?" she challenged.  
  
He looked at her and frowned, then looked away, choosing not to respond. Ro fumed, half angry, half miserable. So, Zee had chosen Eve over her. It figured. Everyone she had ever known had eventually become tired of her, and thrown her out. Why had she thought Zee would be any different? Just because he had been the only person who had been truly kind to her for as long as she could remember- tears threatened to well up in her eyes, for losing Zee was so much worse than losing anyone else had been. But she wouldn't let Zee see her cry.  
  
Part of her knew that Zee hadn't really meant what he seemed to say. But the other part of her wanted to be angry with him for even daring to consider choosing Eve. She adopted her typical strategy for whenever a foster home didn't work out, to convince herself that she hated whoever had rejected her, but she couldn't quite bring herself to hate Zee. The emotions threatened to overcome her, so she allowed them out in the form of rage. She trembled slightly and then began to shout at him.  
  
"Fine, you useless piece of scrap metal! What was I even thinking, wasting two years of my life on you! You're not even human; you're just a talking can opener. How could you be my friend? What the hell did I even see in you?" she yelled, eyes shining. But as soon as she said it, she was filled with regret. Anyone else would understand that she was angry, just throwing a juvenile tantrum. But Zee couldn't understand that.  
  
She saw the hurt in his eyes, hurt that she had expected when she came, but that she had expected to be caused by Eve, not her. She struggled to think of something to say, but couldn't quite make up her mind what. He grabbed her arm in a swift, jerky movement and pressed a small piece of plastic into her palm.  
  
"Your CredCard?" she said in puzzlement.  
  
"It's the answer to your question."  
  
"My quest- oh, Zee, no! I never-"  
  
"Goodbye, Ro," he said expressionlessly, and turned to walk away down the hall. She stared at him stupidly for a second, and then ran to catch up. Even though he was walking, his pace was very swift.  
  
"Zee, please! You know I didn't mean-"  
  
He looked at her for a second before pushing her away roughly and walking out the door. Ro sat on the floor where he had pushed her, and watched miserably as he left. She wanted to chase after him, but knew he would only push her away again. So, feeling helpless, she let several repressed tears run down her face before wiping them away and walking back into the room.  
  
A/N: I'm sorry for subjecting you to that, I truly am. Both Zee and Ro are seriously PMSing in this chapter, aren't they? Ah, well. 


	7. Alone Again

Coal Creek, Wyoming, 9:58:11 am, February 4th  
  
A lone Zeta trudged through the snow, leaving footprints far deeper than a man the size of his hologram should have. He walked along a snowdrift going through an old, abandoned part of town. The ghosts of run down houses surrounded him, and he had never felt so alone. He struggled to sort through the various emotions in his head, to separate and catalogue them. This was his typical reaction to new experiences, but it didn't seem to be working at the moment. He didn't know how to classify half of what he felt, and there was no Ro to explain.  
  
Ro. Her very name sent a new wave of feelings through him. He had experienced anger before, and he knew that what he was feeling should be anger, but perhaps he had miscatagorized anger previously because it didn't fit the current situation. He had never had feelings such as what he experienced now, a sort of mix of every feeling he had ever known. Why should he feel this way? It was hardly new for Ro to call him names, and she had yelled at him before, as well. It had never bothered him like this. He supposed it was because the words she spoke were spoken with the intent of hurting him. Yes, hurt. He had never really experienced physical pain before, so the analogy was lost on him, but he was definitely experiencing the emotion hurt.  
  
[Cataloging new data: Hurt]  
  
But why would Ro try to hurt him? She was his friend, wasn't she? Perhaps friends do try to hurt each other?  
  
[Searching data: Friend. . . Data found: A person whom one knows, likes, and trusts; an acquaintance; a person with whom one is allied in a struggle or cause; a comrade; one who is not hostile.]  
  
A friend would not try to hurt him, therefore Ro was not his friend. This was a terrible realization, because he certainly considered Ro his friend, his best friend. How could she not feel that same affection towards him hat he felt towards her?  
  
But wait- had he himself not tried to hurt her earlier, by accusing her of only caring about his CredCard, and storming off? This moment was the first time that he had even truly considered the possibility that Ro had ulterior motives in accompanying him, that she cared more about money than him. Giving her the card was an action only meant to convey his own feelings, and because he knew it would upset her. He had also been guilty of wanting to strike her, and he had pushed her out of his way when she followed him. Yet there was no doubt that he considered Ro a friend.  
  
[Updating data: Friend. . . Friends hurt each other? Clarification required.]  
  
Still, it didn't make any sense. Confusion. . .that was one emotion he understood. Ro always made him feel confused, now more than ever. Even if friends did hurt each other, why had Ro done so to him? She had never tried to hurt him before, and she had appeared genuinely angry with him this time. Obviously, hurting one's friends wasn't a kind gesture, even if it was commonplace. He couldn't think of anything that would have made her so angry at him, but he must have done something to provoke her unwittingly.  
  
He played back the memories of the fight in his mind, searching for clues. She trying to persuade him that Eve couldn't be trusted, her anger and frustration when he tried to show her that she was wrong. His own anger with her that lapsed suddenly and led him to beg her to not make him choose between his two friends; her challenge to him: "Who would you choose, Zee?"  
  
Who would he choose? An obvious question, that made him wonder whether it was meant to be rhetorical. It most likely was, as there was no doubt that he would choose Ro over Eve. Besides, if he answered, then Ro would use it against him, and force him to leave his new friend, and he didn't want that. It was this that caused Ro to shout at him. That didn't help him much, even if the question wasn't meant to be rhetoric, she wouldn't be that angry at him for refusing to respond. He played back his memory of her shouting at him, and realized with a start that her eyes were very bright, almost as if she were on the verge of tears.  
  
Hurt, then? Not anger? But why would Ro be hurt? Unless. . .unless she thought that his silence meant that he had chosen Eve? It was the only outcome that would hurt her, but why would she think that? He hadn't responded. Was it some human rule of decision, that silence implies a vote for the latter? Why was this rule never in place previously? Why-  
  
He realized suddenly that it didn't matter the reason why, he would need to deduce that later. He could see that Ro truly did believe that he had chosen Eve, and for now, that was all that mattered. He understood her emotions now, that she was never angry, but hurt. He saw her yell at him in rage that wasn't really rage, then her sadness and miserable apologies that he had ignored. He watched himself press his CredCard into her hand and storm out. She was following him, he could see that now, trying to reconcile, but he pushed her down.  
  
Zeta hoped deeply that he hadn't hurt her when she fell, because she was his friend, and he couldn't stand to see her hurt. She was his friend. All of his anger was replaced with relief, and sympathy for Ro. Poor Ro, didn't she know that she always came first to him, that he cared about her in a way he didn't understand himself? No, of course not.  
  
He thought again about his mysterious relationship with Ro, and the answer came to him so clearly he was amazed he hadn't seen it earlier. But was it possible? Was it possible for him to feel this way? He hadn't thought so, but there was no other explanation that made it so clear, so perfect. . .  
  
Yes. He was certain of it, and he needed to tell her. He would call her now, and tell her that he loved her, and therefore would never be able to replace her. . .Never before had he told her how much he cared for her. His affection for her was such a precious, valuable, fragile thing, and he was afraid that she would laugh and crush it with her disdain. But now that didn't matter. Even if she laughed at him, it would be better than thinking he didn't care about her.  
  
He found an old payphone and connected himself to it, calling the motel room and trying to reformat the unclear resolution on the video screen. The phone rang about five times before he was forwarded to the front desk. He disconnected the call and tried again, but to no avail. This time he let the woman at the desk pick up the phone.  
  
"Coal Creek Motel, how may I help you?"  
  
"Yes, do you know where a girl who has been staying in Room 7 is? She is 17, has short blonde hair, and she's wearing a leather jacket and jean pants."  
  
"No, I'm sorry, I haven't seen her pass this way. Are you sure she's not in her room?"  
  
"I. . .don't think so."  
  
"Then perhaps she left out the back entrance. I hope she brought more than a leather jacket, though. It's cold out there."  
  
"Alright, thank you," he answered.  
  
"Have a nice day," she smiled, and he disconnected. Zee looked away and for the first time realized his surroundings. The woman was right, it was cold out here. Approximately 2 degrees Fahrenheit, and the blizzard would make it feel so much colder. He now noticed his limited visibility, which would be far worse for a human. How long had it been since he had left the hotel? 27:55 minutes. Had Ro attempted to follow him?  
  
That would be so very like her, to venture out into the storm with no regards to her safety. She might get frostbitten or hypothermia. She could be lying right now in the deep snowdrifts, freezing to death- or frozen, as nearly half an hour would be enough time. But he didn't want to think of it. He activated his warm body scanner, but if she was suffering from hypothermia, her signal would be very weak.  
  
Suddenly, a thought came to him. Where was Eve? She should still be in the motel room, even if Ro wasn't. Had she gone with Ro? She might have been able to help her- but no, Ro would never let Eve accompany her. And, he remembered that Ro hadn't followed him when he left the motel, but remained sitting in the hallway. She wouldn't go looking for him, anyway- it was obvious he would come back even from Ro's perspective; Eve was still in the motel.  
  
Had Bennett or Eta found them? He was certain that Eve had far more physical strength than she let on, an NSA android would have to. She would protect Ro, wouldn't she? Even if she knew that Ro didn't like her, she knew how much Ro meant to him, and she wouldn't allow her to be captured or hurt, would she? He didn't think so. But she wouldn't be able to handle Eta, or a fully equipped NSA team by herself. Perhaps they had escaped. . .but he doubted that they would leave him behind. He knew from experience that Ro would never abandon him to the NSA, even when it put her own life in danger.  
  
He had a similar feeling to what he felt when he first met Eta. He wasn't sure how he knew, but something was wrong. . .and Ro was in danger. Ignoring the very likely notion that he was walking into a trap, he turned and ran back into town, running at a speed few humans could reach, and not caring who saw. He reached the motel within minutes, and threw open the door to the room. He was shocked when he saw what was before him- a perfectly normal hotel room, no sign of a struggle, nothing out of place, just devoid of people. Had they just gone, leaving him behind? No, Ro would never leave him. He knew that.  
  
He looked around for anything out of the ordinary, anything at all, but all he found was a broken mug on the kitchen floor that had spilled hot chocolate across the linoleum. He bent down to look at it, his only lead, and found several dark spots of blood, nearly dry, but obviously still new. Androids didn't bleed.  
  
"Ro, what's happened to you? Who hurt you?"  
  
He was more perplexed than ever. It seemed as though someone had crept up on her and knocked her out, or there would have been more of a struggle. Perhaps he was wrong. Perhaps she dropped her cup, cut herself on the glass, and went to get a bandage. But he still could not shake the feeling that something was wrong, a feeling growing worse every minute that she did not walk through the door.  
  
Zeta activated his footprint scanner, and looked around the scene again. From the other room, the striped pattern of Ro's small sneakers walked up to the kitchen counter. Zeta noticed a small pile of powder from instant hot chocolate left there on the counter. Ro seemed to have then begun pacing to kitchen, perhaps drinking her chocolate. A pair of very heavy, oddly shaped footprints were also there.  
  
Odd. Very odd. He had been under the impression that Eve was a semi-organic android, and would therefore have humanoid footprints. But these were the prints of an Infiltration Unit. He could tell they weren't his, but from their position, it was obvious that Ro had seen the maker of the prints and hadn't felt threatened. Perhaps another Infiltration Unit donned a hologram of Eve or himself? It had happened before.  
  
Then again. . .he hadn't bothered to look into it before, but there didn't seem to be any logical reason why he couldn't spot Eve for what she was. Eve wasn't as advanced as IU7, and Zeta could even see the only slightly superior synthoid as a fake- there was a slight aura about his human hologram that Zeta's infrared scanners picked up. But Eta, on the other hand. . .the latest synthoid had appeared completely human.  
  
Zeta watched as the synthoid footprints, the ones that he was certain belonged to Eta, approach Ro's footprints, turned the other way. They met where the hot cocoa was spilled, and then Ro's footprints were gone. Apparently, she had been knocked out and carried out of the room. Abducted. Zeta felt his powerful metal fist clench.  
  
If anything happened to Ro. . .but of course, this was his fault. He knew Ro was a better judge of character than he, but he had refused to listen to her. Instead, he had trusted Eve blindly and even allowed her to know that Ro would be his most vulnerable weakness.  
  
But there was no time for this. If Eta sensed that he would not come for Ro, she would be useless to the synthoid, and Eta would destroy her to prevent Ro returning to him. Zeta couldn't let that happen. It seemed impossible to attempt to fight Eta, not when she was far superior to him, chose the battlefield, and was holding Ro hostage. Therefore, he would have to consent to being destroyed, and have faith that Eta would spare Ro. After all, Eta's mission objective was to kill him, not his accomplice. And as much as he knew Ro would hate it, he would rather be destroyed and lose all his memories than see her killed.  
  
Zeta knew there would be a clue to Ro's location. Eta had obviously not been careful, for Infiltration Units were designed to destroy targets without being traced. She wanted Zeta to find her, and therefore it would be made obvious for him where he was supposed to go.  
  
Sure enough, a map of train routes across the country was lying open on the counter. The location Gotham City was circled, and at the bottom, in very straight handwriting rather like computer printing, the words "NSA building on 17th. Basement Level."  
  
Zeta folded the map and tucked it in the empty weapons panel on his chest, then exited the room.  
  
A/N: Heh. . .it sounds like Zeta's just standing around thinking for twenty minutes while he thinks Ro is in danger, but he can process thoughts pretty quickly, so it's actually only a few seconds. Or at least that's my cover.  
  
On another note, awww, poor Zee. . .I hate making bad things happen to him, but if I didn't, it wouldn't be much of a story, would it? I could just imagine the shows. . .  
  
[Theme song plays]  
  
Ro: Zee, let's go get an ice cream!  
  
Zee: Okay. I like chocolate and vanilla swirl!  
  
Ro: You're my best friend.  
  
Zee: Mine too. ^_^  
  
*Bennett walks by but doesn't notice them, so he goes home. . .Ro and Zee get ice cream, which Zee is somehow magically able to eat*  
  
[Picture of a random 20th century thingy]  
  
Zee: Look, Ro, it's a random 20th century thingy!  
  
Ro: Wow, Zee, you're so smart! ^_^  
  
. . .Well, it's better than TZP being cancelled. . .  
  
Oh, btw, I realize that they don't really have pens and handwriting and stuff, cause of that tzp episode...the pen is mightier than the sword and all that. Get over it. 


	8. In the Basement

NSA Headquarters, Gotham City, 2:12:33pm February 4th  
  
Zeta was inside the NSA building. He had managed to fool the computer guard into thinking he was Agent West. After taking on West's hologram, he rode the elevator down to Level One, the NSA basement.  
  
He felt very much like his old self, the way he had been before he had left the NSA. He was on a mission, thinking and feeling and caring about nothing except accomplishing his goal by any means necessary. He would've destroyed Eta if he could have, but he couldn't, and that meant nothing to him. He logically mapped out his mission plan- to surrender to Eta, to be destroyed, so that Ro could live.  
  
She wouldn't accept it, he knew, but both he and Eta were far more powerful than she, so there would be nothing she could do. If necessary, he would use force to restrain her.  
  
But if he really thought about that, he knew that he was afraid, afraid of death, of merely ceasing to exist, for he didn't really believe that he had a soul. He was afraid of losing Ro, even though he wouldn't care once he was gone. This was not as bad as Eta killing her. She would still exist to live and enjoy life, even if he could not.  
  
Would Ro feel as terrible as he would if he lost her? He doubted it. He knew Ro cared about him, but that afternoon he had come to realize that the feelings he had for her were different; were what would be classified as love. Ro was human, she had experienced things like friendship and loss before, and she would be able to find someone else to care about her.  
  
For him, there was no one else but Ro, and there could never be anyone else but Ro, for who else could come to care for a soulless machine, to consider him her family and her best friend?  
  
The elevator arrived at Level One. Zeta shifted his hologram to his favorite form; because that was the way he wanted to be remembered. He sighed and stepped off.  
  
Ro was not looking at the elevator as it opened. She was struggling and cursing Eta, who held her wrists so tightly that they were rubbed raw. Her legs and back ached from being forced into an uncomfortable crouching position for a long time, she had no idea how long, and her head still ached from where Eve had knocked her out. She could feel a small train of itchy dried blood on her temple that she had never had a chance to clean.  
  
She knew struggling didn't hurt her enemy but merely weakened her own energy, but she couldn't help it. Ro was not a patient person; she was used to action, and despised helplessness. Half of her yearned for some sort of climax to end this damned waiting, but the other half knew what that climax would have to be, and dreaded it.  
  
No, that wouldn't happen, she told herself. . .he would never be so stupid. She tried to convince herself that he wouldn't even come, when she heard the elevator doors open.  
  
"It's okay," she thought frantically, "It isn't Zee. He's mad at me, he won't come. Oh please, don't let it be Zee. . ."  
  
"Eta, if you've hurt her. . ."  
  
She didn't need to look up. She knew Zee's voice, the monotone sound of it, the dialogue that he had no idea sounded so pathetically heroic, the slight tremor when he was angry. . .but it didn't sound exactly like Zee, not like the Zee she knew. His voice was filled with a passionate hatred, yet the apathetic tone of one who has long realized that there is no hope, even though, turning her head at last, she could see that his hologram's expression was the perfect poker face.  
  
"Zee! I'm fine! But you have to go, she's going to kill you!"  
  
"Ro. . ." he said gently, with the tone of one speaking to a child who will not accept what is inevitable. Ro knew instantly what he was planning, she knew Zeta far too well, and hated him for it.  
  
"Damn it, tin man, stop playing the hero, 'cause I don't like playing the damsel in distress for you. I can take care of myself. Now get out of here, please!"  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
"She's going to kill you, Zee!" she pleaded, not even realizing that she was no longer being held by Eta. Automatically she advanced towards him, and he took his wide, sweeping steps towards her as well.  
  
"I know," he said gently, coming close enough to put his hand on her shoulder. "Maybe if I died, it would be better for you. Maybe if we had never met-"  
  
"No!" she shouted, clasping his hand in hers. "Don't even say that, Zee. I need you!"  
  
"Ro, I won't let you be hurt."  
  
"But I'm not allowed to stop you from being hurt? What gives you that right?" she shouted in his face. It infuriated her further that his expression never changed, he continued to look at her completely stoically.  
  
"Ro," he said finally, in his very matter-of-fact tone, "I think that I'm in love with you."  
  
There was a tremendously long silence, as everything seemed to stand still. Ro laughed nervously as she said "You'd better not have chosen now to develop a sense of humor, Zee."  
  
"I'm serious," he reassured her.  
  
"Oh, okay," Ro commented lightly. "Then, I guess I think I love you too."  
  
She raised her lips to kiss him, but suddenly, there was a loud pulsing sound and the two of them were surrounded by a blinding bright light. She felt Zee's hands tear away from hers and she screamed his name, but couldn't see anything. She figured nothing could happen, this light didn't hurt, it was just bright and loud. She curled up in a ball on the floor until it passed. Finally, she looked up and looked around.  
  
"Zee?" she asked softly. But Zee was lying on the floor, hologramless, battered, charred, and still. Eta was standing next to a large machine with a large iron cannon at the top, which was still smoking. She left the machine and approached Zeta. Ro stared for a moment, in shock, then ran towards Zee, throwing her arms around his neck.  
  
"Omigod, Zee, are you okay?"  
  
She expected his dull grey eyes to change to their typical bright white, she expected him to sit up, repair himself, and make a casual comment. But he didn't move.  
  
"Zee! Get up, you stupid synthoid-" she yelled at him, even though she knew it would help. Eta regarded her curiously.  
  
"You know that he's dead, right? He's been hit with an EM ray, there's no way he could survive that."  
  
Ro froze, holding Zee, her eyes locking on Eta. Zee was gone. . .he was dead. . .she stared at him, unwilling to believe it. Zee, her family, her best friend. . .okay, more than friend, reduced to a titanium shell.  
  
At this point, most people would cry, give up. But Ro pulled herself to her feet, her eyes now transfixed again on Eta, a steady tremble moving rapidly from her finger tips and spreading like an electric pulse through her body. Her teeth gritted so hard it hurt, every muscle in her body was tensed. Ro was pissed.  
  
"You. . .you. . ." she diverged into a stream of obscenities, despite the fact that Eta wouldn't know what they meant. "You killed him! Godammit, I'm gonna kill you!"  
  
Eta ignored her, putting up the 'Eve' hologram again, this time in an NSA uniform. She turned to go, and the sight of that red ponytail bobbing innocently as she walked filled Ro with such a deep hatred she felt as though her temple would burst. Hot angry tears welled in her eyes, and she lost all reason, instead running at Eta in an attempt to tackle her, hurt her in any way possible.  
  
"Don't you try to leave!" she screamed, socking Eve with all her might. Her fist fell on solid metal, and a cracking sound told her she had broken her fingers. The biting pain felt somehow satisfying, so she hit again and again until her knuckles were sticky with blood. Eve watched, an almost amused expression on her face, but finally she began to tire, and lifted Ro, tossing her across the room.  
  
Ro hit the floor hard, and rolled to a stop at the base of the giant electromagnet, the very same, she thought with indignation, that had been the death of Zee. Her body ached, and just the effort of movement sent a throb through her temple so sharp it blinded her. But her anger seemed to give her strength, the strength to hobble to her feet. The lust for revenge was beating through her body like the pumping of her blood.  
  
The cannon. With that one thought guiding her, Ro pulled herself onto the cannon platform. Eta was already leaving, intending to walk away and leave Ro here. Leave Zeta here.  
  
Groaning in pain, she slumped over the large EM ray. Eta seemed to have noticed her again, staring at her in what for a human would have been shock, but for the powerful synthoid it was calculation. Finally deciding, she began to raise the powerful plasma cannon in her arm to do away with Ro.  
  
Ro saw the cannon and chuckled to herself, unafraid. She wasn't going to loose. They didn't call her bulldozer for nothing. The cannon was already warm for its last use, so Ro merely had to push the button, and then slump over the wonderfully hot metal of the ray. As Eta was engulfed in blinding light, Ro succumbed to darkness.  
  
Author's note~ Yes, I know, I killed Zee off. . .*sniffle* But I had too, see it's just how the plot goes. . .DON'T THROW STUFF AT ME! *dashes off and hides, sniffling* 


	9. In the Downpour

Apartment 301, Bayview Complex, Golden Bay City, 9:14:33am May 12th  
  
"Zee?" Ro called across the gardens. "Zee? Where'd you go?"  
  
Ro looked around the lovely garden. It was so nice to be out her with the sun beating gently on her back and brightly colored flowers up to her ankles.  
  
"Coming, Ro!" shouted Zee from somewhere out of sight, and Ro turned her head. There he was, jogging towards her from the hedges, his small form growing larger as he drew close. Ro laughed mirthfully, and began running towards him. They met over a bed of gardenias, trampling them as Zee swept her up into a huge bear hug, laughing as well, his laughter loud and sweet and clear, real soulful laughter.  
  
"Mmm, Zee," she murmured, still giggling, enjoying his presence. He smiled broadly and lifted her chin, lifting her whole body up to his level, their faces coming together, lips inches apart. Ro closed her eyes, and-  
  
"Rosalie? Are you up?" Ro jolted awake when she heard he door open, the lovely picture fading to instead show a rather plain white room. Ro lay on her mattress in the middle of the floor, sheets sliding off her body as she sat up and looked into the earnest blue eyes of her brother, Casey MacCurdy.  
  
"Oh, sorry to wake you. . .I just wanted to tell you I was going to work now."  
  
"Oh, okay," Ro said softly, her trying to look interested in the bumping white carpet beneath her. Maybe if she closed her eyes, the vision would return. Somehow, she didn't think so.  
  
This had been the clearest picture of Zee she'd had in months, and all of the clearer ones previously had been memories of his death. But this time, she could feel the warmth of his body, smell the strange metallic smell he had, hear every tone of his voice, see him exactly as he had been. She wanted to see him again so much, but she wasn't sure she'd be able to. Already when she tried to think of him during the day, the memory was faded like an old fashioned photograph, and she knew that someday, she would find that she couldn't remember him at all. And she wanted to remember him so badly it hurt.  
  
"Are you Okay?" Casey asked worriedly, sensing that he had somehow intruded.  
  
"Yeah, fine," Ro said, turning away from his warm gaze. In movies, Golden Bay was always shown as warm and sunny. In reality, it was always overcast and almost always raining. Casey assured her that it got better during the summer, but Ro didn't mind- it fit. Flowers and sunshine for the world that Zee inhabited, grey and rain for the reality in which she was forced to reside.  
  
"Ro?" Casey inquired. She ignored him coldly. Ro knew her brother was trying to take care of her, and had even taken a rather long leave of absence from work to stay home with her when she first arrived and was still bedridden from her injuries, but she didn't want to talk to him. He was trying to hard to take care of her. Taking care of her was Zee's job, and no one could ever replace Zee.  
  
"Ro," he tried again, "I'm worried about you. I mean, it's one thing to mourn, but it's been over three months now since. . .you know. . .and you're still- I mean, you never go outside, you never talk to me, you won't eat unless I make you. . .you just sit here all day sleeping or staring out the window. Okay, so at first I thought it was just because you were hurt, but you're better now. . .maybe if you went outside, did some other things you'd feel better about it all, but just sitting here thinking about it all day can't possibly be healthy-" he sounded so desperate, almost near tears, that Ro had the unpleasant sensation of pity for him.  
  
After all, he had offered for her to come live with him as soon as he heard, and she certainly wasn't being the world's greatest guest. But he couldn't possibly understand the horrible, sickening emptiness that grew worse every day, that filled her every thought.  
  
It was medicinal for her to watch the rain slither down her window panes like tears, for crying seemed to be the only thing that could relieve the dull ache in her chest.  
  
"I'm sorry," she whispered, and he rather timidly put an arm around her shoulder. Strange to think that they were the siblings that each of them had always wanted, and yet they were so disconnected, so afraid of one another.  
  
"It's okay, Ro. I know he was. . .well. . .really. . ."  
  
"Yeah. He was."  
  
"Well, um, like I said, I'm going to work now. . ."  
  
"Okay. Bye, Casey."  
  
He walked out, smiling sadly. "Bye, Bulldozer. Look, maybe tonight we could go pick out some stuff for your room? If you're going to be spending so much time in it, it might as well not look like a prison cell," he chuckled, gesturing to the bare walls and Ro's single cot.  
  
"Oh. . .yeah, that sounds great."  
  
"See you tonight, then."  
  
He left, closing the door behind him. Ro pulled the covers over herself and lay down again on the mattress, her eyes open, staring out the window. Getting her furniture, something so simple. . .but it was really a sign from Casey that these living arrangements were to be permanent.  
  
Ro knew she should be grateful- two years ago the prospect of living in a stable home with her brother would have been the next best thing to meeting her parents. But to completely move in with Casey would be to accept that the part of her life with Zee was over, and that she would have to move on.  
  
Ro sighed, a deep side that rocked her entire body. Part of her wanted to fall asleep and try to call back that perfect dream, but part of her was still wary. For the longest time, the only dreams she had were of Zee's death, repeated over and over again, worse every time.  
  
She remembered waking up in the hospital about a week after her encounter with Eta in the basement. She had apparently been found by some NSA agents, including Agent Bennett. Her former enemy apologized profusely for Eta, saying that Eta's remnants had been destroyed, and she must have been out of control since she had been instructed not to hurt Zeta's accomplice.  
  
He had seemed genuinely distraught over Zee's death- well, as distraught as stoic James Bennett ever seemed- and admitted that he believed in the synthoid's innocence. A bit too late, Ro thought bitterly. But there was no denying her gratitude- Bennett had managed to gain a pardon for her from the NSA board and get her out of an interrogation.  
  
Only after the agents had left did Ro finally have time to let everything sink in. She had been too intent on revenge with Eta when he first passed, and then unconscious afterwards. But truth of her situation didn't take long after she had been left alone- she hadn't spent a night alone in nearly two years. She found that she could no longer sleep without Zeta hovering nearby and being annoyingly watchful, or hearing his thick, grinding snores echoing through the room. And it was hard waking up knowing that he wouldn't be there to greet her good morning.  
  
The rain fell harder outside Casey's apartment, the apartment called "Bayview" even though the huge body of water wasn't really anywhere nearby. She could hear the heavy droplets slapping against the side of the house and rattling the windowpane. Ro shivered although she wasn't cold. Her shoulders continued to shake after the shiver had passed, and before she knew it she was crying so hard into her pillow that it grew damp.  
  
That wasn't strange- she did it virtually every night. Some small thing would set it off without warning, and she was never sure why because the trigger usually had little to do with Zee. But it surprised her that her body had tears left. She jolted upright when there was a knock on the door.  
  
"Ro?" came Casey's shaking voice through her door. Ro felt trespassed upon- she didn't want him around while she was crying. What was he still doing home?  
  
"What?" she snapped, drying to rub the redness off her face with a sheet.  
  
"There's someone at the door for you," he said again in that strange shaky voice.  
  
"Tell them to go away," she snapped, pulling the pillow over her head.  
  
"No, I. . .I think you might want to come down,"  
  
Ro drew in breath sharply, but shouted "Fine, tell them I'm coming." She yanked on a pair of jeans lying unfolded in her closet and pulled a sweater over her head hastily, messing her hair. She flung open the door and glared at his brother, who looked like he had just seen a ghost. Ignoring him, Ro ran out of the living room into the hallway of the apartment complex, and slid down the banister to the bottom floor. She opened the door to outside, and almost fainted when she saw who stood there.  
  
There he was, standing in the downpour, water sliding down his face and body, his dark hair slick with rainwater, his old and ill-fitting brown trench coat drenched. Ro stood still, her stomach spinning with what felt almost like indigestion. She held onto the doorway for support as his eyes met hers, so deep and dark blue like the bay.  
  
"Ro?" A broad smile crossed his face.  
  
"Hi, Zee," she said weakly, and then, regaining her bearing, grabbed his collar and pulled his face down into a long kiss while the rainwater soaked them both to the skin.  
  
Author's Note~ *giggles madly and adores Zee/Ro sap, even though there's no real explanation as to why Zee is standing here as of yet.* 


	10. Epilogue

Golden Bay Airport, Golden Bay, California, May 22nd, 7:29:04 am  
  
Ro Rowen plopped down at the small round table with her scone and steaming hot cappuccino.  
  
"Caffeine. . ." she remarked, then took a deep swig of the drink. Zeta sat down opposite her and mimicked her with his own cup of coffee. No sooner than he had taken a huge gulp, he swallowed with a pained expression on his face, coughing and grasping his throat.  
  
"It's hot!"  
  
Ro rolled her eyes, a grin on her face.  
  
"Coffee's supposed to be hot, Zee," she said, laughing at his animated expressions.  
  
"But it burns! And it's too bitter. I don't like it." He said firmly, pushing the cup over to her. "I like chocolate a lot better."  
  
Ro knew that. It seemed that Zeta had quite a sweet tooth, but he wasn't fond of anything bitter, spicy, or sour. His tastes were rather like those of a small child, which made sense seeing as he was new to being able to eat and drink Ro handed him her chocolate chip scone, which he took gladly and began to chew.  
  
"Zee, Dr. Selig's going to hate me."  
  
Zeta looked perplexed. "Why?"  
  
"Because! You're eating all junk food!" she giggled. And junk food was worse for Zeta than a normal person, seeing as he didn't eat much, only enough to keep the cellular components of his body functioning properly. "Is there anything you like that isn't made out of processed sugar?"  
  
He looked thoughtful. "I don't think so. I guess I like blueberries."  
  
"Well, that's a start," said Ro, defeated. But she was still giggling, it was sometimes funny putting up with Zee's new eating habits. The other day when she had forced him to go shopping and buy something other than the horrible old clothes that had probably been picked out by Dr. Selig himself, she offered to get him a soda. When he drank it, he spit that out, too, saying that he didn't like it. A hysterical Ro informed him that it was Root beer cherry cola. Zeta didn't really find the joke as funny as she had. But Ro had fun just being with him, showing him around Golden Bay even though she hadn't really seen much of it before he arrived.  
  
"What time does your flight leave?" Ro asked casually. Zeta didn't even have to check his ticket. "7:45"  
  
Ro glanced at her watch. "We should get you onboard, then, so you can have a good seat. . .Casey's bringing all of your things to the baggage check, right?"  
  
"Yes, Ro," said Zee, without his hologram unable to disguise the disgust on his face. Ro giggled again- Zeta obviously wasn't a fan of her fashion choices.  
  
The two of them stood up, Zeta still finishing the scone as Ro pulled him to his terminal. Casey was waiting for them at the gate with tickets in hand. It appeared that Ro's watch was a little off, because the flight was already boarding.  
  
"Bye, Zee," Ro said, pulling him into a hug. "I'll miss you. Say hi to Dr. Selig for me, and tell him I'll be coming to Gotham in a couple weeks when your final operations are over. Eat lots of blueberries, okay?"  
  
"I will. Goodbye, Ro." Zeta kissed her, a kiss that lasted longer than expected and drew the attention of most of the people waiting at the gate. Finally a polite cough from Casey reminded them that Zeta had to board the plane. Ro pulled away, her cheeks as red as her sibling's.  
  
"Yeah, so, bye," she said embarrassedly, and Zee waved, not seeming to register her embarrassment, and walked onto the plane.  
  
Ro and Casey waited in the terminal in silence until the plane began to glide away from the gate 5 minutes later. They both waved, although they knew Zee couldn't see them. Or actually, maybe he could. Ro got the impression his eyesight wasn't as amazing as it had been, but it was likely still very good.  
  
"So, he's going back to Gotham to see Dr. Selig?" Casey asked, more to break the silence than anything else. "Isn't he that guy who died?"  
  
Ro nodded. "We thought he'd died, but he's just been in higher security. After Eta hurt Zee, his body had been destroyed by the EM ray, but his mind was still okay. So Agent Bennett tracked down Dr. Selig and had him build a new body for Zee. A semi-organic one this time."  
  
Casey cocked his head, looking bemused. "Why didn't anyone tell you? Bennett came to visit you in the hospital, right?"  
  
Ro had asked all of these questions to Zee when the initial shock of his arrival had worn off. "Bennett hadn't actually recovered the body when he visited me, but he wouldn't have told me anyways. No one was sure if the procedure would work, since Zee was so badly damaged. They thought that a part of his mind might be missing, and it would've been harder to fix than any other synthoid. Zee's a lot more complex, and Dr. Selig himself doesn't even know exactly what makes him tick."  
  
"So. . .he's getting another operation done on Gotham?"  
  
Ro shrugged. "I think it's just like working out the bugs or something. I'll probably fly up there when it's all finished, but since Zee would be offline the whole time, it'd be pretty pointless to go now." She didn't mention the other reason, that she wanted to make up for lost time with her brother, but it was understood.  
  
Casey gestured to the clear sky out the terminal window. "What did I tell you, Ro? It's already clearing up, and we haven't hit June yet."  
  
Ro grinned. "Yeah, you're right."  
  
Casey shook his head. "No, it's usually a lot more overcast in May, and often in June, too. The best time of year is actually late summer, like August. But while it's such a nice day, let's enjoy it."  
  
Ro laughed. "Alright then, what do you want to do?"  
  
"Something really great. . .I don't have to go into the office today."  
  
"Do you have any money?" Ro asked, laughing at Casey's infectious mood.  
  
"Damn! No, I'm totally broke. Why didn't you ask Zee for some creds before he got on the plane?" Casey chastised, laughing as well.  
  
"There must be something we can do for cheap," Ro giggled.  
  
"You obviously haven't been in the city long enough. They charge you to go to the beach now!"  
  
"Really?" asked Ro, who hadn't noticed because Zeta always paid all of her fares.  
  
Casey nodded. "It wasn't like this before, when we lived with Grandma and Grandpa. We weren't in Golden Bay, but we'd drive up to the beach on nice days, and it was free then. But you know how the feds are," he chuckled. "You really know!"  
  
Ro nodded. "Casey? I've never had the chance to ask you- what were they like? Our grandparents, I mean."  
  
Casey thought about this. "It's been along time, and I might get mixed up. But I'll try to tell you over some ice cream," he said.  
  
"Only if you pay," Ro said slyly.  
  
"Come on, I have enough money for ice cream," Casey grinned, and the two of them left the building together. 


End file.
